Ordonez, Spaanstra Lead No. 9 Virginia Past Liberty

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. –Diana Ordonez (Prosper, Texas) tallied a hat trick, while Alexa Spaanstra (Brighton, Mich.) turned in four assists to help No. 9 Virginia (2-0) pick up a 6-0 victory over Liberty (0-2) on Sunday (Aug. 25) afternoon at Klöckner Stadium.

The hat trick by Ordonez was the first for a Virginia player since Veronica Latsko’s against Pittsburgh in the 2017 season. The four assists from Spaanstra marked the first time a Cavaliers has had four assists in a match since Morgan Brian’s five-assist performance against High Point in the 2014 NCAA Tournament.

In addition to the three goals from Ordonez, Virginia also got goals from sophomore Ashlynn Serepca (Cornelius, N.C.), senior Meghan McCool (Glenside, Pa.) and freshman Cam Lexow (Abington, Pa.). 

“It was a much better second half for us, but credit Liberty – they defended very hard in the first half,” said Virginia head coach Steve Swanson. “We weren’t using the space that was there for us in the first half. Our decision making wasn’t as solid early today as it was on Friday night. It took a little longer for us to figure out where the spaces were, to link and get our timing down with our runs. Our second half was much better, which was good to see.”

Virginia struck first, scoring in the 11th minute when Spaanstra connected with Ordonez. Spaanstra brought the ball down the left side of the field and cut in towards the box, sending a crisp pass ahead to Ordonez at the top of six for the freshman forward.

After holding a 1-0 lead at the break, Virginia came out firing in the second half scoring five goals on the way to the 6-0 victory.

Spaanstra and Ordonez connected for the second time on the afternoon in the 66th minute. Spaanstra dribbled the ball down the left side of the box and was briefly dispossessed of the ball by a Liberty defender as she entered the box. The sophomore chased the ball down, catching up to it at the end line and sending the ball in toward the center of the six where Ordonez tapped it in for the 2-0 lead.

The third goal came in the 70th minute with a Spaanstra service from a similar spot as  the previous goal. After receiving the pass, Spaanstra turned away from the pressure along the end line and sent the ball into the six where Serepca tapped it in past the keeper for the three-goal lead. 

Spaanstra’s fourth assist of the afternoon came on the Cavaliers’ fourth goal as she served the ball into the box on a corner kick to McCool at the near post. The senior flicked the ball intothe back post to give Virginia the 4-0 lead at the 73-minute mark

A penalty kick in the 79th minute extended the Virginia lead. Lexow was fouled on a run into the box, setting up the kick and the freshman converted for the five-goal lead for the home team.

Virginia capped the scoring in the 84th minute when Ordonez completed her hat trick. Ordonez connected with Anna Sumpter (Charlottesville, Va.) on a give-and-go pass for Virginia’s the sixth goal of the afternoon. Sumpter’s pass into the box opened a lane for Ordonez who tapped it around a defender and slipped the ball into goal past the keeper.

The Cavaliers will continue to play at home next weekend, kicking things off on Friday with a 5:30 p.m. match against East Carolina as part of a doubleheader with the Virginia men’s team.